Benjamin H. Todd discovered a love of flying at age 9, when he flew in his father’s gyrocopter and ultra-light plane, and “the exhilaration of being in the air stayed with him,” said Terry Williams, a family friend.

Todd, 29, of Colville, Wash., was killed Jan. 26 when two OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters crashed in Kirkuk. He was a 1997 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Drum.

“He was high-spirited and kindhearted,” said Williams. “He was kind of an unassuming guy, not a big talker about himself.”

Todd grew up the oldest of three brothers, rode dirt bikes and four-wheelers, played high school football and joined the local Search and Rescue unit as a teenager. He told family those search and rescue skills helped after he joined the Army in 1999 and went into training to be a Ranger.

Todd served two tours in Afghanistan with the Rangers, including the first which was shortly after the 2001 terrorist attack.

“It didn’t harden his attitude about life. He was still an easygoing guy,” Williams said.